Unruly (Between a rock and a hard place 4)

Chapter 8

Lan Qiren set down from his sword and heard quite a loud thud as Wei Wuxian behind him did the same. It seemed like the boy was still trying to be as rebellious as his current situation would allow him. But it was of no matter, Lan Qiren would make sure that this behaviour would be beaten out of him soon enough.

As soon as he was on the ground, there was a disciple in purple robes dashing towards him and bowing to him in respect. It was a balm for Lan Qiren's eyes, not everyone in the Lotus Pier seemed to have such a brazen disrespect for authority and rules as Wei Wuxian.

"Sect Leader Lan, welcome to Lotus Pier. Could I ask what brings you here?"

The disciple was clearly trying to be polite, but he was watching him with surprised eyes and shooting worried glances to Wei Wuxian standing behind Lan Qiren's back. It would seem like this was not the first instance when someone came to complain about the boy's behaviour personally. If that was the case, all of this would be soon over, he was sure of it.

He levelled the disciple with a sharp look, still too angry at Wei Wuxian to be able to act normally and requested: "I came to meet the Yunmeng Jiang sect leader and his wife, it is a matter involving Wei Wuxian. Please relay the message as this is quite urgent."

The disciple looked worriedly over Lan Qiren's shoulder again but bowed and replied: "Of course, Master Lan, I will go notify the Sect Leader and his wife immediately. Let me show you to reception room where you can wait in the meantime. Tea will be served shortly."

Lan Qiren nodded and followed the disciple. He only made two steps and had to turn around thought because he could hear Wei Wuxian was not following him. Was the boy thinking that now when he was back home, he could do as he pleased and escape the punishment? Such audacity and disrespect, really.

"Come with me!"

Only a few words were enough for Wei Wuxian to follow after him with heavy steps but without complaining. Still, Lan Qiren was displeased that he had to say anything at all, the boy should have known better on his own. He should not have had to be told what to do in this kind of situation when his crimes were so blatantly obvious to anyone with two eyes.

The disciple showed him inside a nicely decorated reception room. Lan Qiren thanked him with a nod of his head and entered. He sat down at the low table, waiting for his tea. His expression darkened when Wei Wuxian only stood in the middle of the room, apparently not sure if he should join him at the table or not; there was no other place to sit down either.

"Kneel in the corner," Lan Qiren sent him away, not wanting to look at him for the time being. His mind was already disturbed enough; he did not need any more reasons for anger lest he would really spit out blood or go straight into a qi deviation.

It did not even take three minutes and there was another Yunmeng Jiang sect disciple coming inside with a pot of a steaming tea and four cups on a plate. Her eyes shot in the direction of Wei Wuxian and widened, but he did not comment the arrangement when he kneeled down and served Lan Qiren his tea. She must have been a smart girl, or she had witnessed this kind of situation many times before, she had only prepared one cup of tea, leaving the rest of the cups on the plate for the time when Jiang Fengmian and Yu Ziyuan would come.

Lan Qiren was pleased. At last, things were getting back to his own pace, with everything not orchestrated by Wei Wuxian anymore. He was starting to calm down. The tea was also helping, it was a fragrant and rich tasting blend, not something he would usually drink in the Cloud Recesses, but it was fine to indulge himself once in a while. It would also be quite rude if he refused to drink the tea just because it was not up to the Gusu Lan sect standards of modesty and moderation.

When he finished his cup, he brewed himself another one and continued sipping it. It had already been almost half an hour since he had arrived and there was still no sign of Jiang Fengmian or Yu Ziyuan. Lan Qiren was getting somewhat irritated again. If he would have to wait for much longer, he would not be able to make it back to the Cloud Recesses before the curfew tonight, leaving him no other choice but to spend the night here in the Lotus Pier or in Caiyi town which would be even less pleasant as he did not like to sleep in an unknown inn. He scowled into his cup of tea.

It was exactly at that moment that the Yunmeng Jiang sect leader and his wife arrived. Lan Qiren immediately noticed that there was a strange atmosphere surrounding them and a kind of a barrier almost tangible between them. They were pointedly looking away from each other. If Lan Qiren was not mistaken, they must have just had an argument. And seeing how furiously Yu Ziyuan was glaring at Wei Wuxian, it must have revolved around him.

The boy was still kneeling in the corner of the room, close to the door, only his posture was now a little more slumped than in the beginning. He was facing the wall as he had been previously ordered so he could not see who just came inside, but he must have guessed it as his muscles become tense all of a sudden. The arrival of his adoptive parents was apparently making him nervous. It was good to see that Wei Wuxian still had respect for someone if not for any other authority including Lan Qiren, his teacher.

If Yu Ziyuan was watching the boy with rage, Jiang Fengmian only seemed sad, resigned even. Lan Qiren's scowl became even more pronounced, this was not a correct attitude when facing such a serious offender like Wei Wuxian. Did the Yunmeng Jiang sect leader not understand the situation clearly? Well, anyway, there was a conversation to be had, Jiang Fengmian would be on the same page as Lan Qiren and Yu Ziyuan soon enough.

Lan Qiren stood up and bowed his head in a greeting, attracting the attention of the other sect leader towards himself. Jiang Fengmian greeted in the same manner and with one last glance in Wei Wuxian's direction, he went to join Lan Qiren at the table. A servant came inside just behind the Yunmeng Jiang sect leader and his wife and served all three of them from a new pot of tea, the same fragrant and strong blend, only freshly prepared. She left the new pot on the table and excused herself with a bow.

Once all three of them had their own cup of tea in front of them, Yu Ziyuan barked out with a furious glance shot towards Wei Wuxian: "So, what did he do this time?"

Lan Qiren did not lose any time to explain the situation.